Advanced logistics platform with road pricing and access criteria to improve urban environment and mobility of goods

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

BACKGROUND

Urban freight transport represents 10-18% of urban traffic but accounts for about 25% of total transport air pollution and over 20% of congestion costs. It is also a key contributor to road injuries. Although significant efforts are made in EU cities, the need for accelerating the implementation of more sustainable urban logistics solutions has become urgent.

Considering last-mile delivery trip characteristics and the large number of people exposed to traffic pollution, the optimisation of urban logistics processes can provide a significant contribution to improving overall urban mobility and fostering new cost-effective types of operations, technologies, services and business models.

In Lucca, environmental and traffic problems related to commercial fleets are intensified in the historic area by a dense grid of narrow streets and by additional constraints resulting from the presence of historical buildings, monuments and pedestrian flows for visiting tourists. These conditions are also present in the cities of Stockholm (Sweden) and Zadar (Croatia).

OBJECTIVES

The goal of the LIFE ASPIRE project is the implementation of an integrated set of measures (regulatory, organisational, operational and technological), extending those previously implemented in Lucca, to achieve higher standards of energy efficiency and urban air quality. LIFE ASPIRE plans to introduce a ‘credit-based’ access policy to the city, using a system that applies flexible road pricing criteria to transport operators. The main innovation is the implementation of a policy that rewards or penalises transport operators based on different factors, such as vehicle emissions, duration of stay, trip frequency and the utilisation of time slots or new logistics services. The project will adopt a Logistics Credit Management Platform (LOCMAP), which manages two new logistics services: Load/Unload Parking Lots and Cargo-bike Sharing. LOCMAP will also integrate with the existing access control system, enhanced with RFID technology, to control the entrance and exit of commercial vehicles in the Limited Traffic Zone (LTZ). In this way, LOCMAP will reward cleaner vehicles with high credit points. The potential of replicability and transferability of the credit-based access control policy will be verified in Stockholm (Sweden) and Zadar (Croatia), taking into account local contexts.

LIFE ASPIRE addresses a fundamental problem with a clear European dimension: the development of sustainable freight distribution in urban areas. The competitiveness of cities is undermined when quality of life is eroded, environmental damage is caused, and travel delays and costs rise. The project therefore addresses a range of EU policies, including the Global Agreement on Climate Changes (Paris Agreement) with regard to sustainable freight transport in urban areas; Directive 2008/50/EC on Ambient Air Quality and Cleaner Air for Europe regarding noise reduction and improvements in urban air quality; and the Communication ‘A European Strategy for Low-Emission Mobility’ [COM(2016) 501].

Expected results: The implementation of LIFE ASPIRE measures represents a new approach to urban freight distribution management (and, in particular, for last-mile deliveries), by addressing the issue through the adoption of soft measures to reduce emissions (e.g. RFID), eco-sustainable logistics services (Load/Unload Parking lots and Cargo-bike Sharing) and effective/innovative rules (e.g. credit incentives).

Specific expected results are:

Reductions in current levels of freight traffic by decreasing the total number of commercial vehicles undertaking last-mile delivery operations in the historic centre of Lucca;

Lower levels of environmental pollution due to commercial vehicle emissions, with a CO2 reduction of 11.6%, a NOx reduction of 10.6% and a Particulate Matter (PM) reduction of 12.6% compared to current levels;

Reduction in energy consumption by urban freight transport;

Lower levels of noise pollution;

Less risk to historic buildings due to vibrations resulting from heavy traffic;

Improvements in safety for pedestrians;

Greater uptake of low/zero emission vehicles by transport operators;

Transport operators more likely to use logistics services provided by the local Urban Consolidation Centre, thanks to the new enforcement and access policy; and

Improved urban environment and thus quality of life for residents, visitors and tourists.